Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1887-03-04
WALKERS VENGEANCE

thousand people heard the stery OF Grim
Walker. That was during the fiercest
part of our civil war, and minor Incl
dents were speedily absorbed and for
gotten. | doubt If there are n score of
people living to-day who can recall the
details of this singular mans adventures,
and | do not remember that anything
save brief outline of the massacre OF
his family has ever appeared in print.
| was pony express rider on the
Overland route. That meant helping 10
guard stages, carrying light mail on
INV saddle, forwarding dispatches, tax
! ing nv turn TO act as agent of some sta
BILE and various other things which need
not be explained. There were then sew
eral great trails leading west from the
borders of civilization, and all were
more or less travelled. but the favorte
routes were from st. Joseph and Coun-
ell Bluffs, the one being known as the
northern and the other as the southern
route. was on a route along the Platte
river, west of Fort Kearney, which was
sometimrs fifty miles long and some
times l25. according to the way the In
dians were behaving and the number OF
men we had for service.
Grim Walker was pioneer named
Charles o. Walker, from near Iowa
City. He was giant in size, naturally
sour and tacturn of disposition, aud his
family consisted of wife and three
children. While the country was e1-
cited over the civil war, and travel by
the Overland had almost come 70 stop
except in cases of necessity, Walker and
others formed an immigrant party TO
make push for the golden land. When
first heard of them they numbered
twenty wagons and sixty or seventy
people. and were on the Platte, east of
Kearney. which was then dangerous
ground. When the outfit reached kear-
ney some were for turning back, others
for electinga new captain, others for set
Ting down near by and establishing
ranches. 1t seemed that there were
three or four different factions In the
party, and several bitter quarrels had
resulted. in the then state Of affairs
200 brave and united men could have
scarcely hoped to reach the Colorado or
Wyoming line, for the Indians were up
in arms Oh every trail and :hirsting for
blood and scalps When it was known.
therefore, that Grim Walker, as he had
come to be known, had been elected
captain of faction and intended to
push on at the head OF only seven fam
lilies, which could muster but nine
fighting men, soldiers, hunters, Indian
fighters and Overland men argued and
scolded and predicted. Not an argu-
ment could move Grim Walker. Not a
prediction could frighten one OF his ad-
herents. 1t appeared to them to be a
case where manhood and pride were at
stake. and when il was limited that the
military would restrain them they made
secret preparations and left at night.
1t was an awful thing for those bgoted
and determined men to drive their wives
and children, consisting of twenty-five
people, to a horrible death, but nothing
short of a battle with the military would
have stopped them.
They left Kearney one night about 10
o'clock, drawing away quietly and trav-
cling a: their best speed. They could
not have gone ten miles before being
discovered by the Indians. A party OF
twenty of us left over the same trail at
noon next day, and We had gone only
fifteen miles when we found evidences
that the little party, which was keeping
| along the Platte, had been attacked.
This must have been about daylight.
Soon after sunrise they had been driven
TO shelter ia a grove of cottonw woods, but
before reaching it one Of the men had
been killed and scalped, Il wagon had
broken down and been abandoned, and
stray bullets had killed woman and a
child as they covered down behind the
cargo of the wagons. At A o'clock in
the afternoon We came TO the grove,
driving away tile last Of the 5avages, but
we were too late. Such spectacle as
we there beheld was enough TO sicken
the heart Of the bravest Indian fighter
The little party had been attacked by
about 300 redskins, and the fight had
lasted for half day. As near as We
could figure from blood spots on the
earth fourteen Indians had been killed
and there were bloody trails to Show
that as many more had been wounded
The foolhardy men had died game as ar
Offset. We made out that their camp
had been carried BY charge, and thai
the last OF the fighting was hand tt
hand. Five of the women had been car
ried of into horrible captivity, while al
others had been butchered-all saw,
Grim Walker. The bodies had been Gu
.nd hacked and mutiiared in terrible
manner, but we could have identified
Walker by his size. even had he been de
capitated. The Immigrants horses haC
all been killed, the wagons plunderet
and burned, and the savages wer
bundling up some of the plumber whel
we came in sight and drove them away
All that was lett us waa the sad work o
4 burying the corpses.